RCN: watch out, Auch ahead!

Entre Nîmes et Auch, un match qui promet de faire des étincelles, au stade Kaufmann. photo alexis bethune

Nationale 2/16e journée. Les Nîmois sont prêts pour le combat, ce samedi à 19 h 30 à Kaufmann.

"The shock at Kaufmann!" This is the promise that has been displayed on lollipops and 4×3 panels for a few days in Nîmes to announce the reception of Auch, a big name in French rugby. Difficult to ignore because the meeting seems so important, crucial.

The Gardois like this kind of match

This match against the Gersois is on the minds of all rugby lovers in the city of Antonins. Especially since the last defeat (zero points once again) of the RCN in Lannemezan (22-12). Guillaume Aguilar's men are aware of the stakes facing a direct competitor in qualifying for the final stages. "You have to be the favorite for the first four places in the group , wishes President Steeve Calligaro (the RCN is currently 5th, Editor's note) and we must truly put ourselves in warrior mode!"

For his manager, Guillaume Aguilar, it's about "staying undefeated at Kaufmann. The last two matches in Nîmes ended in two victories with the offensive bonus “, he recalls mischievously. "We have proven that we are capable of making beautiful things and returning beautiful copies at home."

And against an Auch which is not in the form of its life (2 successes and 2 losses in 2024, including the last Saturday spent at home against Mâcon in a late match, 27-25), then ? < i>"It's against small teams that we have difficulty… Auch is a big team. We know how to win this kind of meeting. We simply have to put the right ingredients in it!", continues Calligaro. And among the ingredients of success, there is obviously efficiency. "We ran out of it in Lannemezan", concedes Aguilar. However, nothing to taint his serenity, despite a still substantial infirmary: around ten elements including certain leaders. "Obviously, these injuries weigh us down a bit, above all they prevent us from really putting our game plan in place."

Absences or not, there is an invincibility to be maintained: the band led by captain Benjamin Barnerias has not lost at home for over a year (on November 26, 2022 against Aubenas). Hopefully it lasts!

This Saturday at 7:30 p.m., the RCN (5th, 44 pts) hosts Auch (4th, 45 pts). I subscribe to read more